Latest Offenders

Description

A man from Crewe has been jailed after he admitted engaging in sexual activity with children.

Andrew Cork appeared at Chester Crown Court on Friday 1 March where he was sentenced to 11-years in prison.

The 53-year-old, of Verdin Court, Leighton, had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of engaging in sexual communications with a child, two counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity (no penetration) and one count of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.

He also admitted one count of possession of indecent images of children and three counts of making indecent images of children.

The case against Cork began in May 2022 when officers from Norfolk Police contacted Cheshire Police to report that a man had been engaging in sexual communications with a 9-year-old child in Norfolk.

The man had been using a mobile telephone number which placed him in the Crewe area.

The investigation was undertaken by the Online Child Abuse Investigation Team (OCAIT) at Cheshire Police and following further enquiries officers identified Cork as the suspect.

A warrant was conducted at his home on Thursday 14 July and Cork was arrested. Several electronic devices were also seized, including a laptop and two mobile phones.

During questioning Cork admitted that he had been engaging in sexually explicit communications with the child in Norfolk, he also told officers that there were indecent images of children on his devices although he denied being sexually attracted to children.

Cork was subsequently released on bail while further enquiries were undertaken, including analysis of all his electronic devices.

During the analyses officers discovered over 300 indecent images of children and more than 60 sexually explicit videos of children. Officers also discovered that he had also been engaging in sexual communications with an 11-year-old child in Birmingham.

Cork was later charged in relation to all the offences.

Description

A Stirling dad was caught with hundreds of sickening child abuse photos and videos, a court has heard.

Police raided Steven Anderson’s home after receiving a tip-off illicit files were being downloaded to his computer.

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Description

A man who began sexually abusing a boy nearly 30 years ago has been jailed – after the victim’s family made an audio recording of him admitting his crimes.

Anthony Moore committed the abuse between 1994 and 1998, while living in the Charnwood area. His crimes came to light in 2022 when his victim – now an adult – told police about what had happened.

When interviewed by detectives from the Child Abuse Investigation Unit’s non-recent team, he initially denied the claims. However, he then answered ‘no comment’ to all further questions when an audio recording made by people known to the victim was played to him, in which he could be heard admitting what he was alleged to have done.

He was subsequently charged with seven counts of indecent assault on boy under the age of 16 years and five counts of gross indecency with a boy under 16 years of age. He pleaded guilty to both offences when he appeared at Leicester Magistrates’ Court on 14 July last year.

Yesterday (Thursday 14 March) at Leicester Crown Court, the 58-year-old was sentenced to 10 years and eight months’ imprisonment.

Moore, of Lonsdale Road in Stamford, Lincolnshire, was made subject to a lifetime Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) and a lifetime restraining order forbidding contact with the victim.

Detective Constable Aisling McPhillips, the officer in the case, said: “Moore was an adult when the abuse began – and the victim was a child. The abuse started nearly 30 years ago and I’m certain he thought his crimes would never come to light.

“However, his victim has shown great courage in reporting what happened to police, meaning that Moore is now serving time in prison for what he did and I hope he can continue to move on with his life.

“I also hope this case serves as an example to any other victims of non-recent sexual abuse that it’s never too late to report things to police and that we will endeavour to bring those responsible to justice.”

Description

A charity shop worker has been jailed for two years for possessing extreme child abuse images, after being cleared of exposing herself to two 11-year-old girls.

Samantha Norris was acquitted by a jury at Southampton Crown Court of the two charges of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child which were alleged to have taken place on July 27, 2023. The prosecution had claimed that Norris, who is in the process of gender transitioning, had exposed her penis deliberately to the two youngsters through the window of her flat.

The 56-year-old was also cleared earlier in the trial of two further charges of engaging in sexual activity and two of indecent exposure. Norris told the court that she was a naturist who was habitually naked in her own home and the children could only have seen her naked if they had been spying on her.

Norris, who worked at a Sue Ryder charity shop in her home town of Ringwood, Hampshire, said she had been the victim of abuse from youngsters in the town and she felt these girls had been taunting her. During the trial Charles Gabb, prosecuting, told the jury that Norris was naked by the window when she was seen by the two girls on two days in a row.

He said: The defendant, Miss Norris, now transitioning, she has a penis, was standing there fully naked, on the first day almost glorifying in that nudity over quite a period of time knowing the girls were there and drawing attention to herself. And the next day when she saw them again and she was naked, glorying in her nudity, almost posturing, definitely manipulating her penis with these two young girls being able to see all this. The Crown would suggest there was no attempt to cover up, no attempts of any modesty or propriety.

He said that one of the girls described the defendant throwing her penis around and added both children could see her playing with her penis and knowing the children were watching. It certainly caused alarm for these two children and an element of distress as well.

Norris told the court she thought the children had only seen her head and shoulders and, when asked why she did not put clothes on, replied: Because I am a naturist and I didnt see it was necessary in my own home. She added: For people like me, we can provide an object of curiosity, so we attract unwanted attention and various behaviours related to it. I have seen it quite a lot. I think they got themselves wound up and were taunting me for a while.

After the jury returned its not guilty verdicts, Norris, entered guilty pleas to three charges of making indecent images of children of categories A, B and C, one count of possessing prohibited images of children and a charge of possessing an extreme image depicting a person engaging in sexual activity with an animal.

As well as the prison sentence, Judge Nicholas Rowland made Norris subject to a sexual harm prevention order for 10 years. The court the defendant had 16,000 images of children including about 2,000 still and 121 moving images of category A seriousness. The images included children aged as young as three with others showing youngsters aged about six in distress and pain, the court heard.

Sentencing Norris, Judge Rowland said that Norris had also in her possession written notes describing sexual fantasies involving a four-and-a-half year old child and a New Years resolution to have sex with a girl under 10.

He told the defendant: Its all about you Samantha Norris and not the victims. You do not accept they are victims, you have distorted views and you do not feel your offending should be treated as serious how would a right-minded person think about that? Your views are alarming and complex you present a high risk of harm to children.

He added: Its pretty blatant to me that you decided not to enter guilty pleas (earlier) as these pleas would have gone in front of the jury of the other matters.

Description

The first person in England and Wales to be convicted of a cyber-flashing offence has been jailed for 66 weeks. Nicholas Hawkes was convicted under the Online Safety Act after cyber-flashing became an offence on January 31 this year.

The 39-year-old, from Basildon, Essex, was already a convicted sex offender when he sent unsolicited images of his erect penis to a 15-year-old girl and a woman in her sixties on February 9 this year.

Southend Crown Court heard on Tuesday that that evening Hawkes asked to use his father's phone to call probation. He went into another room where he sent the indecent photo via WhatsApp to a woman in her sixties, using his father's phone.

Minutes later, on the same device, he sent an explicit image to the child over iMessage, who was said to have been left "overwhelmed and crying". Both victims took screenshots of the messages and the woman reported him to Essex Police the same day.

Prosecuting, David Barr said the offences "fall as part of an established pattern of behaviour of the defendant".

The court heard Hawkes' offending has been exclusively sexual in nature and started after he was kidnapped, stabbed and held at a £5,000 ransom demanded from his father when he was 31 years old.

He does it to 'create chaos'

Barry Gilbert, defending, argued Hawkes does not receive sexual gratification from his offending and instead "does it to create chaos when he's under personal pressure" as a result of his PTSD following the attack.

However, Judge Samantha Leigh rejected the argument that he did not receive sexual gratification and said "you clearly are deeply disturbed and have a warped view of yourself and your sexual desires".

She added: "There is a duty that I have that is a duty to protect, there is only one sentence for this set of offending it clearly crosses the custody threshold."

Despite his previous offending, Hawkes has reportedly not received any treatment. Though he was offered 12 appointments with a psychiatrist, he never received them as the waiting list was too long, the court heard.

Hawkes admitted during an earlier hearing at Southend Magistrates' Court to two counts of sending a photograph or film of genitals to cause alarm, distress or humiliation. He was jailed at Southend Crown Court on Tuesday.

Cyber-flashing can involve offenders sending people an unsolicited sexual image on social media, dating apps, Bluetooth or Airdrop.

Victims of the offence and other image-based abuses receive lifelong anonymity under the Sexual Offences Act from the point they report it.

Hawkes was already on the sex offenders register until November 2033 after last year being convicted of sexual activity with a child under 16 years old and exposure, for which he also received a community order.

On Tuesday he pleaded guilty to breaching the order and breaching a suspended sentence for another sexual offence.

He was also sentenced for those offences and will serve half of the 66 weeks in prison and will then be released on license.

He was handed a restraining order for both women lasting 10 years, and a sexual harm prevention order banning him from approaching women who he does not know on public highways and in parks for 15 years.

Description

A rapist who sexually assaulted two young girls has been put behind bars.

Christopher Powis raped one girl, aged under 13, in March 2023 after forcing himself upon her.

Powis called police the following day to ask whether he should hand himself in after the child’s mother discovered what had happened.

He was arrested and detectives launched an investigation.

A second victim revealed Powis, aged 65, had also sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions.

The abuse of the second victim began in 2016 when she was at primary school. Powis told the girl not to say anything.

Powis, of Bulwell, was jailed for a total of 12-and-a-half years when he appeared at Nottingham Crown Court for sentencing on Monday (11 March).

He was also made the subject of a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and was added to the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.

Description

A "cold and dangerous" man who followed a woman off a bus and attacked her has been jailed after police used facial recognition to identify and catch him.

Craig Walters, 39, followed the young woman off a bus in Cardiff then attacked her, before being interrupted by a member of the public.

South Wales Police said they gathered CCTV from the area, including from the bus, and used facial recognition software to identify the suspect as Walters, who also goes by Craig Watts and Craig Whites and was known to police.

He was arrested within 48 hours of the attack and pleaded guilty to false imprisonment with intent to commit a sexual offence.

He has now been jailed for life at Cardiff Crown Court and ordered to serve a minimum of six years in prison. He will also have to register as a sex offender for life.

Detective Constable Dave Simmons, from Cardiff CID, said: “At around 10.50pm on Sunday, November 10, 2019 a young woman was followed off a bus on Pontprennau. As she walked alongside a grass verge in Pentwyn Road, she was grabbed from behind by a complete stranger

“She bravely tried to fight him off and screamed for help until thankfully a member of the public intervened and the suspect ran off. It must have been absolutely terrifying.

“We gathered extensive CCTV from the area, including footage from the Cardiff Bus she has been travelling on, and this gave us an image of the suspect who had been on the same bus.

“Using Retrospective Facial Recognition on this CCTV image we identified the suspect as Craig Walters – someone who was known to police.

“I am in no doubt that we would have got to him eventually, but the use of retrospective facial recognition technology meant we got to him quicker and within 48 hours he was in custody.”

Simmons said the victim had shown huge bravery throughout the case and also thanked the witness who intervened on the night of the attack.

He added: “Walters however is cold and dangerous individual who as shown no remorse and I believe he only pleaded guilty because of the strength of the evidence.

“I hope the successful outcome of this investigation will give other victims the confidence to come forward.

“As detectives we use all available technology to bring offenders to justice, and help and support is available to all victims.”

Description

A sex offender has been jailed after targeting teenagers in Tenterden in November 2023.

On Friday 3 November and Monday 6 November 2023, Joseph Kemp, 33, approached teenage girls in the Ashford Road area of the town and made inappropriate comments to them.

Investigation

The girls reported the incidents and, following an investigation by the East Kent Vulnerability Investigation Team, Kemp was charged on Thursday 9 November.

Kemp, of Tenterden Road, Cranbrook, pleaded guilty to two counts of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and two counts of attempting to engage in sexual activity in the presence of a child.

Jailed

He was sentenced to three years and seven months’ imprisonment at Canterbury Crown Court on Thursday 14 March 2024.

Description

A delivery driver arranged to meet a schoolboy and go back to his house while he was in the course of making drop-offs in the company van, a court has heard. When father-of-two Tyrone Felton arrived at the rendezvous he was was met not by a child but by plain clothes police officers, and an examination of the van revealed its internal CCTV cameras had been covered up.

Sending the 54-year-old to prison a judge at Swansea Crown Court told him the sooner he came to terms with the fact he had "paedophile tendencies" the better it would be for him and for society. He said he sincerely hoped the defendant would take advantage of sex offender education programmes that were available behind bars.

Dean Pulling, prosecuting, said in February this year a decoy profile purporting to belong to a 14-year-old boy was deployed on social media as part of an operation by Tarian, the southern Wales organised crime unit, to identify potential online sex offenders. He said Felton - who was going by the online name Dave1 - made contact with the profile and they began chatting. The court heard the decoy talked about school and made it clear he was aged 14, and Felton said that was fine. During the conversation Felton asked the boy about his underwear and asked if he could "accommodate" if they were to meet.

The court heard Felton told the decoy he was a delivery driver and was currently in Cowbridge heading west to Haverfordwest, and plans were made to meet "at a public place" in Carmarthen so the defendant could pick up the boy and go to the teen's house. At lunchtime Felton arrived at the rendezvous in his van to be met by undercover police officers who had been sent to the location. The court heard that when the defendant's van was searched officers found the internal CCTV cameras in the vehicle had been obscured by a fleece jacket and caps. The defendant was taken to Dafen police station and subsequently answered "no comment" to all questions asked in interview. Mr Pulling said as the Tarian operation was ongoing the name being used by the decoy profile, the social media platforms it was operating on, and the location of the meeting point in Carmarthen would no be revealed in open court.

Tyrone Felton, of Heol Heddwch, Seven Sisters, Dulais Valley, Neath, had previously pleaded guilty to attempting to meet a child following sexual grooming, attempted sexual communications with a child, and arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sexual offence when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has a conviction from 1991 for gross indecency with a child and attempted kidnapping of a child, an incident which saw him exposing his penis to young children and inciting them to touch it.

Harry Dickens, for Felton, said the defendant had gone online to meet and talk to men but his use of the apps "spiralled", and he said the father-of-two could not explain what had precipitated offending that was before the court. He said the defendant "wished he had never done it" and was "deeply sorry".

Judge Paul Thomas KC said the defendant's antecedent record showed that he had had "paedophile tendencies" for a considerable period of time and it may be that sometimes they were "latent" and others "active". He said it was clear from the contents of the pre-sentence report that Felton was in denial, and he told the defendant that the sooner he came to terms with that fact he had a problem the better it would be for him and for society. He noted Felton was not particularly remorseful for his actions but was remorseful for the impact on his family.

With a one-third discount for his guilty pleas Felton was sentenced to two years in prison - he will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community. He was made the subject of a sexual harm prevention order for the next five years, and will be a registered sex offender for the same length of time. Judge Thomas told Felton he sincerely hoped he would take advantage of sex offender education programmes that were available in custody.

Description

A sex offender has appeared in court again and admitted sharing indecent images of children on social media.

Police raided John Daly’s home in Thanet after the disturbing clips were retweeted from an account on X – formerly known as Twitter – connected to his address.

When officers searched the 58-year-old’s home they found category B and C images on his phone, as well as a prohibited image of children.

Daly, of Manston Road, Ramsgate, was later charged with two counts of distributing indecent photographs, two counts of downloading indecent images and one count of being in possession of a prohibited image of a child.

He admitted all of the offences when he appeared before magistrates in Folkestone on March 12.

The court heard when police searched Daly’s home they found he had shared a category B image online on May 16 last year, and had also shared 24 category C images between May 7 and May 22.

A total of 125 indecent images – five category B and 126 category C – had also been downloaded on May 30, and Daly was also found to be in possession of the prohibited image.

Rajni Prashar prosecuting said: “He’s a registered sex offender and has previous convictions for indecent images.

“The indecent images were on Twitter (now X) and were in a direct message but had been retweeted as videos by this account, and the address connected to it matched him.

“The images were found on his mobile phone and he also had a prohibited image of children which showed children in bikinis and swimsuits, and he had used a public Twitter account.

“He was convicted of having indecent images in 2010 and 2014 and he also failed to comply with notification requirements [as a sex offender] in 2022.”

Magistrates decided the offences were so serious they sent Daly’s case to Canterbury Crown Court for sentencing.

He was granted bail until the hearing – a date for which has yet to be set.

Description

A man has been jailed after being caught with almost 400 illegal images of children on a mobile phone.

Carl Webb, formerly of Gloucester Road in Cheltenham, admitted making 240 Category C indecent images of children, 144 prohibited images, and breaching a sexual harm prevention order.

He also admitted failing to report to a police station and being in breach of a suspended prison sentence.

The 37-year-old was jailed for three years and three months on 14 March.

Webb, who has a history of child sex offences dating back more than two decades, was sentenced at Gloucester Crown Court.

He was convicted of indecently assaulting a child in 2002 and was jailed for sexual activity with a child in 2009.

Prosecutor Alec Small said that on 28 September 2022 police visited Webb at his home to check he was complying with his sexual harm prevention order.

He volunteered that he had a borrowed phone that he had not previously declared.

The phone was seized by officers and was found to contain indecent images of children.

Mr Small added that Webb had failed to attend a police station to sign the sex offender register on 1 March 2023.

Webb is currently serving a three-year jail term imposed on him in October 2023 after he breached a community order he had received at an earlier hearing.

Defending, Catherine Spedding, said Webb is "keen to look at the root cause of his offending" by taking part in a sex offender programme.

She added: "Once he is sentenced, he hopes to be moved to a prison where he can undertake that positive and useful course. "He is looking forward to that because he wants to cease this sort of offending." Webb was also given a new sexual harm prevention order.

Description

A 69-YEAR-OLD man received a two-year prison term, suspended for two years, for possessing hundreds of indecent images and videos of children.

Peter Minchim was arrested at his home in Beeches Park, Hampton Fields, near Minchinhampton, after Gloucestershire Police received information from the National Crime Agency that indecent images from his address had been detected.

Prosecutor Ehsanul Oarith told Gloucester Crown Court on Friday, March 15, that his computer was seized and 369 indecent images and two videos of children in the most serious Category A were found.  

There were also 286 Category B images and 687 Category C images and one video.

Additionally, a prohibited image and 12 images of extreme pornography were found. 

The prosecutor explained that the youngest child portrayed was six months old. 

Catherine Spedding, defending, said: “A full pre-sentence report has been carried out and Minchim has submitted two references to the court.

"He is supported in court by Alison Huntley, an NHS support worker for the criminal justice system, who has been involved since his arrest."

Ms Huntley told the court: “Minchim has shown significant remorse for this offence and has contacted the specialist organisation ‘Stop It Now’ to get help and support. 

“Because of this offence, his marriage is now over.

"A sentence in the community would be far more beneficial instead of a prison term to allow Minchim to get the help he needs."

Minchim admitted three counts of possessing a total of 1,345 indecent images and videos of children in categories A, B and C, one prohibited image and 12 extreme pornography images between January 31 and August 31 last year.

As well as the suspended sentence, Minchim was ordered to pay £425 in costs, must complete 100 hours of unpaid work and attend 40 rehabilitation activity requirement days. 

Minchim has also been subjected to the terms of a ten-year sexual harm prevention order and sex offender registration for the same time period. 

Judge Recorder Tom Brown said: “These images are disturbing from their descriptions and involve children as young as six months. 

“I accept that you took steps to address your offending, which demonstrates there is a prospect of rehabilitation.

"I am satisfied that you are ashamed by your actions."

Description

A man who repeatedly exposed himself to girls in South Cambridgeshire has been jailed.

Patrick Connors, 22, approached five different girls aged between 13 and 17 June last year, in Sawston, Arbury and Great Shelford.

He drove next to them and asked for directions before indecently exposing himself.

Connors was arrested on 19 June and made no comment in interview but has since pleaded guilty to six counts of indecent exposure and one count of outraging public decency.

Yesterday (11 March) at Cambridge Crown Court, Connors, of Carshalton Road, Banstead, Surrey, was jailed for three and a half years.

He was also placed on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.

Description

An Ellesmere Port paedophile who continued to download indecent images of children while on police bail has been jailed.

Mark Donaghey, 58, of Elaine Close, Great Sutton, pleaded guilty to two sets of downloading and possessing indecent images, which Chester Crown Court heard included children as young as 18 months.

Appearing at the court, sitting at Chester Magistrates Court, for sentencing on Tuesday, March 13, Donaghey received an extended prison sentence as Judge Patrick Thompson said he posed a "very high risk" to members of the public, particularly children.

Prosecuting, Nadeem Nemat said Donaghey had originally been arrested in February 2023 on suspicion of downloading indecent images, putting him in breach of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO). He gave a 'no comment' police interview and was bailed.

While on bail, Donaghey continued to acquire indecent images and was rearrested and charged.

The court heard it was accepted there was some time overlap between the two sets of indecent images cases, and they had been obtained between March 2018 and October 2023.

Computers and laptops were seized, and among them were several hard drives.

Analysis of the devices after the first arrest showed 944 indecent images of children assessed as the most serious category, category A, plus six category A videos. There were also 840 category B images and 4,907 category C images, as well as 142 prohibited images of a child. One category B image was of an 18-month-old child.

There was also evidence Donaghey had used internet search terms to seek the indecent images online.

Analysis of a second set of devices after Donaghey was rearrested showed 583 indecent images and 22 videos assessed as category A, 459 images assessed as category B, plus 914 images and two videos assessed as category C. There were also eight prohibited images of children.

Donaghey had previously been jailed for 18 months in 2002 for attempted gross indecency with a child. In 2005, he was handed an extended sentence of five years plus five years for engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child aged 13 or under, as well as outraging public decency.

A report from probation said Donaghey was a "very high risk" of serious sexual harm.

Defending, Peter Barnett said the best mitigation that could be put forward for Donaghey were his prompt guilty pleas, for which he was entitled to full credit from his sentence.

The defendant showed "self-inflicted destruction" with his behaviour.

Judge Thompson told the defendant: "It is clear to me you have a very unhealthy sexual interest in children."

Donaghey was sentenced to three years in prison for which he must serve at least two-thirds before being eligible for parole plus two years extended licence.

He was handed a new life-long SHPO and he was deprived of all the seized devices.

Description

A pair of Derbyshire brothers, who carried out a “sustained and determined” campaign of sexual abuse against young girls, have been jailed for more than two decades. Bryan and Ian Wren gave the victims cash and sweets to buy their silence as they touched them sexually multiple times, Derby Crown Court heard.

The siblings, now both in their 70s, then carried on with their normal lives leaving the now women “utterly destroyed”. At one stage, after being arrested, Bryan Wren called his brother and told him “I have been a naughty boy”. And one of the victims this week broke down as she bravely read out her impact statement saying “you may see this as historical, but it’s not historical to me”.

Jailing Bryan Wren, who less than seven years ago was sent to prison for sexually assaulting a four-year-old girl, for a total of 13 years and four months, Judge Shaun Smith KC said: “Some people who know you have high regard for you. They were not subjected to the abuse you subjected your victims to.

“You destroyed (one of your) victim’s lives, completely and utterly destroyed it. You could obviously live with what you did because it did not stop you abusing another girl who was even younger in 2015 and for which you were sent to prison in 2017 and rightly so.

“You took many opportunities to abuse her in ways which satisfied your sexual desires and while you lived your life, she has had a life of complete misery. What you did to her has turned her into a wreck, mentally.”

Jailing Ian Wren for seven years for abusing a different underage victim, the judge said: “You might have put it behind you but it has stayed with her forever and will continue to do so even after your release. She stayed silent for 45 years and buried what happened to her so deep but then she gets the double whammy of finding out your brother had been doing things to the other victims at the same time.”

Richardo Childs, prosecuting, said the sexual abuse of the victims began more than four decades ago when they were under the age of 13. He said it included multiple occasions where the brothers touched the girls sexually and then gave one of them 50p and another one of them sweets.

He said it took them decades to pluck up the courage to report their ordeals to the police and an investigation began and led to multiple charges against both men.

One of them read her own victim impact statement to the court. In it she said: “I have been filled with hurt and shame for so many years and for over 45 years I have been silent and I hope they finally understand that their behaviour is unacceptable? You may see this as historical, but it’s not historical to me.”

A second victim’s statement was read by the prosecutor. In hers, she said: “The abuse I suffered left me traumatised and not feeling worthy of life. I moved out of Derby to get a clean slate.”

Bryan Wren, 76, formerly of Mundy Street, Derby and now of Wilton Street, Ilkeston, pleaded guilty to a number charges including indecency with a child and sexual abuse of a girl under the age of 13.

Lesley Pidcock, mitigating, said: “He has a similar conviction from the 1980s and went through two years of electric shock treatment at the former Pastures Hospital (in Derby). It may be felt to be trite but he offers his apologies, his regret, remorse and shame.”

Ian Wren, 73, of Pinfold Lane, Bradley, Ashbourne, also pleaded guilty to similar charges against his single victim. James Varley, his barrister, said: “He worked his life on market stalls and was both a popular and well-liked man making hanging baskets for people. He came prepared and brought a bag knowing he is going into custody.”

Both men were handed lifetime sexual harm prevention orders and were placed on the sex offender register for life.